Home prices rise 3.5% in Springfield

Springfield home prices rose 3.5 percent in February compared to the same month a year ago. The figure includes distressed sales, which comprise short sales and real estate owned transactions, according to real estate market tracking firm CoreLogic (NYSE: CLGX).

Excluding distressed sales, home prices in Springfield jumped 3.8 percent during February from the same month of 2013, according to a news release.

Local home prices, including distressed sales, decreased 0.2 percent from January, while the figure excluding distressed sales increased 0.5 percent month-to-month.

U.S. home prices, including distressed sales, increased by 12.2 percent in February compared to a year earlier, representing the 24th consecutive month of year-to-year increases in home prices on a national scale, the release said.

"The consistent upward movement in home prices should ultimately prove to be an important stimulant for higher levels of sustained market activity and growth in the housing economy," CoreLogic President and CEO Anand Nallathambi said in the release.